Cook in the Kitchen
by Traveller Krysen
Summary: Allen asked for lessons from Jerry, and got trouble instead.


Allen loved food, and it was a pretty good reason for him to learn how to make them. He even asked Jerry if he'd teach him.

Today was his first day, and he was skipping to the lunch room that morning to catch a small snack before he began. Allen walked into the room and over to Jerry.

"Allen! You ready to start?" He asked. Allen shook his head with excitement, almost losing all the slobber that had collected from his dreaming of Jerry's food even during missions. Jerry took him back into the kitchen, and found that he was not the only one that wanted to learn; Lavi, Miranda, Chaoji, and Kanda were all waiting to begin.

"I hope you don't mind that I asked a few others to join in." Jerry said to Allen who looked at Kanda and asked in disbelief, "Kanda? You came to learn cooking?"

Kanda shook his head with a scowl and pointed to Chaoji, "Che, he wouldn't leave me alone until I came with him". Chaoji scratched his head in a nervous manner.

Jerry smiled and spoke up, "Okay everyone, I think today we will start with something simple… Pancakes."

Allen sat at his station looking at the black piece of pancake sitting on his spatula. He didn't know what went wrong; he watched Jerry's step-by-step lesson and had directions in front of him. He looked over at Lenalee's plate, and realized he was not alone; her pancake was burned on the bottom, and was broke in half.

"This is tougher than it looks, huh Allen?" She asked the boy still refusing to put his attempt at breakfast on his plate. He nodded back, and they both looked at Chaoji and Lavi.

Lavi was smiling with a perfect set of pancakes on his, and Chaoji was talking to Kanda about his.

"Hey, Chaoji how'd your turn out?" Lenalee asked, looking at the empty plate.

He turned to the group and placed three pancakes down on it, "They don't look as good as Lavi's… I think if this was a competition, he'd win; Huh, Kanda?" Before Kanda could answer, Jerry walked in, smiling hugely.

"We could let this be a little fun competition, and this can be your first, and last, practice." Everyone smiled back, liking the idea but not as much their first 'try'.

Jerry started with Allen, taking a small bite of the burned meal. He held back his gag, and stated, "Allen, you need work". Allen was in shock, "You're good enough to make food for everyone since you didn't burn down my kitchen".

He moved on to Lenalee's. "Strawberry?" Lenalee nodded, "it's good, just try not to burn the strawberries next time."

Lavi's. "It looks so professional… (gag)… and tastes like cardboard".

Chaoji's. Jerry took a bite and fell over backward. "Chaoji, how did you make this? It's just the right texture, and it's just the right taste". He stood up slowly and moved his attention back to everyone.

"It was all a work in progress, and I will work with you all on it over the week… for now, be ready for tomorrow!"

It had been a whole week, and Allen, Lavi, and Lenalee were sitting in the library talking.

"Okay, so we've figured that Allen can't stop burning things, Lenalee has a thing for strawberries, I can only make a meal look good, and…. Chaoji is good at making pancakes period." Lavi stated. The group had made no advances in their food culinary stills, and each of them began to wonder how Chaoji was so good.

Lenalee nodded, "I wonder why he is so good… you don't think Kanda has anything to do with this do you?" everyone laughed at the idea.

"No, I work right beside them, and Kanda just watches Jerry, then Chaoji, then leaves. Besides, I don't see Kanda as a cooking genius". Lavi replied. And it was true, as far as Lavi could tell Kanda just stood around.

"Hey, guys! What you all talking about?" The group spun around to find Chaoji standing there with a book in his arms. The group glanced at each other, and each had the urge to ask about their earlier topic. "I know you are wondering why I'm just so good at cooking, and I'm not sure why".

The group's shoulders fell and Chaoji tried to find a new way to say that it was beginner's luck. "Guys? Come on! You are all good too… and I'm not really the one who has be-!" Chaoji slapped his mouth shut, trying to avoid the stares being sent his way.

"Talk."

Chaoji sat, feeling the stares of his friends as he was being interrogated.

"It's okay. You can tell us… we just want to know". Lavi said, standing by Lenalee; Allen had been sent out to try to find the only one they thought could have done it.

Chaoji shook his head, keeping his eyes closed because of the bright light that sat right in his face. He had no idea of telling, because then he would find out what he did. "I will not tell you whose book I use- Dang it!"

Lavi smiled and looked at the book Chaoji was carrying with him before. "You mean this one?" He was dangling it in front of Chaoji, letting a few loose papers fall to the floor.

Chaoji winced, but answered, "Please, do not shake it like that. I wasn't supposed to have it, and he'll get mad if you-!" A loud bang was heard just outside the door, and Allen pushed in Kanda with a bag over his head.

"Got him!" He cheered, "It was really hard though." Lenalee hit Allen and Lavi on the head, screaming "What are you doing?!"

Allen rubbed his head before pulling off the bag, "Okay, Kanda! Tell us…" It was not Kanda. The exorcist uniform wearing man under the bag had a shaved head and a beard. "... I am so sorry!"

The man stood up and wiped his sleeves, "Apology accepted… Ma'am, you may want to step outside for a second". Lenalee looked at him weird as he took Chaoji's arm and pulled the two outside. Her answer was soon given as Kanda strode by with an angry look in his eyes. His uniform was also different with a golden insignia on his chest.

"General Kanda… The ones you wanted to speak to are waiting in there". The man said almost with a smile.

Kanda nodded, walked in, and Lenalee was soon reminded of when each of her friends had their innocence fixed by Komui. "General?"

Allen and Lavi were sitting in the infirmary, when Komui walked in with Kanda, Lenalee, and that guy from before. Their eyes went straight to Kanda's chest, "You're a general?!"

Komui smiled and reached his hand out; Kanda placed the golden metal in his hands. "Who said anything about General? I asked Kanda to take Tiedoll's place during the weekend because Tiedoll caught the flu…. Now I came to ask why you had Chaoji in the supply room."

The two shrunk in their beds and Allen finally replied, "Chaoji was really good at cooking, we were just wondering why". Komui fell over laughing, and when he came to he looked at Kanda.

Kanda che'd before speaking up, "He was so good because I lent him a book that some lady gave me on one of my missions. I have no use for it while I'm here, so I hid it knowing he'd take it."

Allen, Lavi, and Lenalee face palmed… "So Kanda was the cooking genius. I told you!" Lenalee said to Lavi and Allen.


End file.
